A/N: Thanks so much for all the reviews, they really are appreciated...and since I left the last chapter on a bit of a cliffhanger I couldn't leave you all hanging for too long :)

Chapter 8 – Facing Fears

Standing in just her underwear and Gibbs' t-shirt Abby reflexively crossed an arm around her middle while the other held the front door open.

"Now I see why he wants you," Ryan said snidely, looking Abby up and down with a raised eyebrow.

Ryan's eyes narrowed in on Abby's neck, the younger woman's hand instinctively covering the hickey she knew Gibbs had left during one of their numerous times together last night. Suddenly she felt incredibly exposed, but Abby also knew this was an opportunity to right a wrong and make up for how badly she'd handled things last night.

She refrained from her first instinct of punching Ryan in the face, biting her tongue at what she really wanted to say as well. She had no doubt the other woman was just trying to get a reaction from her, whether Ryan truly believed Gibbs was with her just for physical reasons made no difference to Abby, she knew there was a whole lot more to their relationship.

"What are you doing here?" Abby repeated.

"I wanted to see what it was that had Gibbs so adamant that it was over between us, apparently all I needed to do last night was take my pants off."

Taken by surprise at the bluntness of Ryan's words, it took Abby a moment to get her head in the right frame of mind to stick up for herself. "If you've come here looking for a fight, to somehow try and turn Gibbs against me, you're wasting your time."

Abby didn't want to be drawn into an argument about why Gibbs was better with her, she had to justify their relationship to no-one. They knew why they were together and that was all that mattered, Abby refused to be intimidated by a woman who clearly was trying her best to get her aggravated. She'd let it get the better of her last night but the same thing wasn't going to happen now, especially in her own apartment.

"As I said, I wanted to see what the appeal was for Gibbs, I may have only met you a couple of times Abby but from what I know...you're all wrong for him."

"And I suppose you're going to try and tell me you're perfect for him," Abby counteracted.

Ryan shrugged her shoulders, as if the notion of who Gibbs belonged with was obvious. "We're closer in age for starters, and Gibbs and I have more in common, we've both been married and had kids...do you really think he'll be able to keep you entertained, you'll get bored with him before the year's out."

Abby forced down her anger at Ryan bringing up Gibbs' marriages and having children, it did show her, however, just how little Ryan understood Gibbs that she would even contemplate alluding to Kelly and using her to score points.

Abby removed her arm from around her middle and placed her hand on her hip, moving from a defensive stance to offensive. "If that's what you think then you know nothing about Gibbs or me...we're happy and nothing you can say is going to change that."

"Are you sure about that?" Ryan challenged, talking a step closer to Abby. "You didn't seem too happy last night. Were you threatened by my presence? Perhaps you don't trust Gibbs, or maybe deep down you know you're not good enough for him."

Abby's stomach churned, but she didn't want Ryan to see that she'd gotten right to the core of the problem...she couldn't fall prey to Ryan's attempts to diminish her relationship with Gibbs.

It was because of the strong bond between them that they had been able to fall asleep in each other's arms last night and not angry or upset with one another. At times she had doubts that she was everything Gibbs needed but he continued to tell her she was and that was something Abby wasn't going to take for granted.

Somehow in the midst of her turbulent emotions Abby found that Ryan's words had the opposite than intended result. They made her more defiant, more willing to fight for Gibbs and surer than she'd ever been that she and Gibbs were meant to be together.

"I'm happier than I've been in a long time, and that's because of Gibbs."

Ryan rolled her eyes at Abby's declaration. "Well you're gonna have to keep him interested in bed because you're deluding yourself if you think this will last."

"And you're deluding yourself if you think coming here would turn Gibbs against me, or that I'll leave him, cos it won't happen. It doesn't matter to me if you think all we have between us is sex, because I know the truth. What we have has formed over years, you couldn't even begin to comprehend what's between us."

Abby gripped hold of the door tighter, ready to shut it in Ryan's face when a thought struck her. She tried to keep the anger that was bubbling below the surface under wraps not wanting to give Ryan even a slight sign of victory over her.

"How do you know where I live? And how did you know when Gibbs was gone?"

"I know things, Abby," she answered conceitedly.

Abby felt her stomach roll at the idea that Ryan had been able to find personal information on her, and that she'd clearly been outside watching and waiting for the right opportunity to strike. She hadn't wanted Gibbs to be there so she could try and intimidate Abby and get her to back away from Gibbs, but Abby was having none of it.

"What does it say about you that you tracked down my address and waited until Gibbs had left before coming up here?" Abby asked, turning the tables on Ryan. "You say you can read people so what does your own behavior tell you?"

"This isn't about me," Ryan shot back. "I'm looking out for Gibbs' best interest, God knows he's already damaged enough, if you'd seen his file you'd know that."

"I don't need to read his file," Abby seethed, "he actually talks to me about the things that are important to him."

Abby could tell her words hit a raw nerve for Ryan, her bitter retort further proving it. "It's miraculous the things men will share in exchange for a physical release."

"I don't hold him for ransom, Gibbs shares things with me when he's ready, it has nothing to do with having something over him. If you'd taken the time to get to know him, to try and understand him, you'd know that and you'd know what a wonderful man he is. I don't need to taunt him with secrets..." Abby trailed off waiting to see what Ryan's reaction would be.

Gibbs had told her that Ryan had held back vital information during the hunt for Harper Dearing and Abby still saw it as a huge act of disloyalty, not only to Gibbs but to the country and the lives of those that everyone else had been trying to protect. Her desire to mess with people's heads had been more important than capturing a mass murderer. Under normal circumstances Abby might have felt a pang of sympathy for a woman who'd lost Gibbs, but after the way Ryan had treated him she had no such feelings.

Ryan shifted on her feet and Abby felt her own sense of smug satisfaction that she'd finally caught the other woman off guard and gained the upper hand. Ryan pursed her lips, her shoulders squaring in an attempt to hide her anger but Abby could see the fire burning in her eyes.

"I see I left so much of a lasting impression on him that he needed to talk about what happened between us."

Abby stared at her in disbelief, did the woman's ego know no boundaries? Just about to reply that the memory she left wasn't a good one, Abby stopped short when Gibbs' voice interrupted her.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

Abby felt both relief and panic as he came up the stairs to her apartment and walked the short distance to her door.

"She was just leaving," Abby answered for Ryan.

As much as she disliked the doctor, Abby didn't want things to get worse because Gibbs felt he needed to protect her. And there was nothing left to be said, Abby hadn't run from Ryan like she had the previous night and she hadn't allowed Ryan to walk all over her. She was proud of herself for standing her ground and not letting any of Ryan's attempts to anger her get the better of her and cause her to lash out. Now she just wanted the other woman gone.

"I'm merely here to wish you luck Gibbs," Ryan said arrogantly, her grin making Abby's skin crawl, "I dare say you're both gonna need it."

"Luck's got nothin' to do with it," Gibbs said, his eyes boring through Ryan. "If it's possible for you to love someone this much then maybe you'll understand."

Gibbs didn't wait for her to respond, he'd said all he was going to say to Ryan. Stepping in through the door to Abby's apartment, he took hold of Abby's hand and closed the door behind him.

They didn't see Ryan standing on the other side, quietly fuming at being made a fool of, her teeth clenched together in anger and her eyes trying to bore through the door. She wasn't used to having the tables turned on her, their comments about how right they were for each other adding the her growing annoyance.

Ryan could see nothing more than sex between them...what else could Gibbs want from someone who had absolutely nothing in common with him? She could offer him more than Abby ever could and when the younger woman started to tire of him, Gibbs would see that.

Pursing her lips in defiance, Ryan walked away from Abby's apartment, contempt practically vibrating from her as she slammed her car door closed and drove off.

"You okay?" Gibbs asked, moving Abby further inside her apartment and putting the bag he was carrying down on the coffee table.

Gibbs had heard their voices as he'd made his way up the stairs to Abby's apartment. His need to protect Abby and save her from the wrath that was Ryan instantly kicked in and he'd run the rest of the way up the steps. But from what he'd heard, Abby had stood up for herself and she'd stood up for their relationship, just like he knew she would.

Abby wrapped her arms around his neck, holding him so tightly that both of them had trouble breathing. She kissed the side of his face, feeling Gibbs enfold his arms around her waist.

"Abbs?"

"I'm okay," she whispered next to his ear.

"You wanna talk about it?"

"Not really."

She didn't particularly want to rehash everything but Abby knew Gibbs would be restless and think the worst if she didn't ease his mind a little. "It was just all mind games, nothing she said means anything because she doesn't know a thing about us."

Gibbs released his grip on her slightly, pulling back so he could brush his lips over Abby's. "That's my girl." He framed her face in his hands, his thumbs gently caressing across her cheeks. "I love you."

"And that's all I care about," Abby smiled. "I love you too."

Gibbs leaned his forehead against hers, a slight smile forming at the corner of his lips. "I heard what you said, about understanding me...you do you know, better than anyone."

"That's because you're more important to me than anything. I trust you Gibbs, I do, and as much as I've been dreading her coming back and for us to have a confrontation like that I think it was what I needed."

"Proud of ya," Gibbs kissed her, slowly teasing her lips apart and deepening the embrace.

"I'm proud of me too," she grinned against his lips when the kiss came to a gradual end. "And what's even better is that I don't have to be scared of her anymore, I know I'm strong enough that I can stand up for myself and I can stand up for us...hell I just outsmarted the queen of mind games."

"You did," Gibbs chuckled.

Abby nestled her head into the curve of his neck and sighed against his skin. She was grateful when Gibbs didn't mention how she was trembling, instead he held her tighter, rubbing his hands gently up and down her back. As happy as she was that she'd faced Ryan, it had still caused a torrent of emotions to run through her, the anger she'd somehow managed to keep at bay slowly beginning to dwindle with Gibbs' nearness.

"I'll always fight for you, Gibbs."

"I know ya will, but I'll always be yours and I'll always be beside you...whenever you need me."

Closing her eyes, Abby slid her arms around his waist and took a deep breath. She loved that he protected her but she was glad on this occasion that she'd been able to fight her own battle and that in her eyes, and Gibbs', she'd won.

Besides Gibbs' distinct scent inflaming her senses she also smelled the aroma of freshly baked pastries. Her stomach grumbled and Gibbs pulled back from her slightly to look at her with a raised eyebrow and the half grin that gave her heart palpitations.

"I guess I'm a little hungry," she admitted shyly, "though we did have a bit of a work out between last night and this morning."

Gibbs stepped away from her to pick the bag up off the coffee table and they headed into the kitchen. "How about something to eat and then we can try out those keys of yours?"

"The keys to my new home...our home?"

Abby hoped she wasn't being too forthright in asking him, deep down she was looking forward to the day they moved in together permanently, but for now she was content for them to take their time.

Any fears she had about saying too much were dispelled when Gibbs placed their breakfast on the counter and turned to face her. He took hold of both of her hands, looking down at their linked fingers before speaking.

"Yeah, Abbs, our home."

TBC...